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Metamorphismandmetamorphicrocksppt 131212202648 Phpapp01
Metamorphismandmetamorphicrocksppt 131212202648 Phpapp01
Metamorphismandmetamorphicrocksppt 131212202648 Phpapp01
rocks
• Rocks created by heat, pressure and/or
chemically reactive fluids
• Metamorphic rocks are produced from
• Igneous rocks
• Sedimentary rocks
• Other metamorphic rocks
Metamorphism
• Metamorphism progresses incrementally from low-
grade to high-grade
• During metamorphism (transformation) the rock
remains essentially solid
• Metamorphism characterized by
• Growth of new minerals from pre-existing
minerals through recrystallization
• Deformation of existing minerals
– Change in shape
– Change in orientation
• Metamorphic settings
Growth of new minerals
Garnet crystal
Deformation of rocks and minerals
• Confining pressure
applies forces equally in
all directions
• Rocks may also be
subjected to differential
stress which is unequal
in different directions
Importance of parent rock
Granite
Gneiss
Directed pressure (stress) effects on
minerals
Rotation
Deformation
within
crystal
Dissolution &
precipitation
of crystal
• Rotation
• Deformation within crystal
• Dissolution and precipitation
of crystal
Foliated textures
• Rock or slaty cleavage
• Closely spaced planar surfaces along which rocks
split
• Schistosity
• Platy minerals are discernible with the unaided
eye and exhibit a planar or layered structure
• Rocks having this texture are referred to as
schist
• Gneissic texture
• Segregation of minerals leads to distinctive
banded appearance
Non-foliated textures
Microscopic picture
Quartzite
• Non-foliated
• Formed from a parent rock of quartz-rich sandstone
• Quartz grains are fused together
• Sugary texture
Handsample
Microscopic picture
Metamorphic
rock
systematics
Metamorphic environments
• Contact or thermal metamorphism (low P, high T)
• Regional metamorphism
• Type A: Pressure and Temperature both
increase comparable
• Type B: Pressure increases relatively faster than
temperature (high P, low T metamorphism)
• Burial metamorphism
• Others
– Hydro-metamrophism
– Shock-metamorphism
Contact metamorphism
• Occurs due to a rise in temperature when magma
invades a host rock
• A zone of metamorphism forms in the rock
surrounding the magma
• Most easily recognized when it occurs at the surface, or
in a near-surface environment
Regional Metamorphism
• Regional metamorphism
• Produces the greatest quantity of
metamorphic rock
• Associated with mountain building and
the subducting plate (high P, low T
metamorphism)
Burial metamorphism
• Associated with very thick sedimentary strata
• Required depth varies from one location to another
depending on the prevailing geothermal gradient
Other types of metamorphism
• Hydrothermal metamorphism
• Chemical alteration caused when hot, ion-rich
fluids, called hydrothermal solutions, circulate
through fissures and cracks that develop in rock
• Most widespread along the axis of the mid-ocean
ridge system
• Impact metamorphism
• Occurs when high speed projectiles called
meteorites strike Earth’s surface
Metamorphic zones
• Systematic variations in the mineralogy and often the
textures of metamorphic rocks are related to the
variations in the degree of metamorphism
• Changes in mineralogy occur from regions of low-grade
metamorphism to regions of high-grade metamorphism
• Certain minerals, index minerals, are good indicators of
the metamorphic conditions in which they form
• Highest degree of metamorphism
– Transitional to igneous rocks
– Indicate melting in certain bands
– Rock called migmatites
– Light bands are igneous components (“magma”)
along with areas of unmelted metamorphic
rock
Metamorphic grade and index
minerals